"...but it’s also a symptom of the mindset that anything that isn’t entirely super-serious is flawed. The conclusion that gets to is that if Justice League International is funny, then it can’t be anything else."
I recently read an article about the lasting legacy of twenty year old comic book series, and it struck me as very informative towards RP. While it is about a comic, and a ton of information in the article is about comics, it's also very relevant to RP styles.
The whole article is a discussion about why this particular book about a group of super heroes is more impactful than any number of other books about super heroes despite the fact that it's often derided as the "Funny" book.
A lot of RPers love serious storylines. Murder, mystery, betrayal, sex, ultraviolence, blood on the ceiling, the whole nine yards. Mature storylines. And there is nothing wrong with those stories. They're not just important, they're often critical to character development. At lot of times though, the funny storyline is considered less important. It's set aside as something entertaining to do once or twice, but isn't as necessary as the impactful drama of missing loves and evil villains killing PCs.
That's where this article makes its stand. The comedy in characterization is just as important as the heavy hitting action and drama. Many Free Companies are groups of extremely powerful people fighting badguys, and bickering amongst themselves with personal drama, making them very close to the established superhero team dynamic, which means that the storylines of FCs can be informed by the same kind of story telling as in super hero comics.
“The groundwork is laid through comedy and character work, so that when the action starts, it hits harder. You’re lulled into thinking that this is just going to be a sitcom about bickering teammates and Guy Gardner’s mouth writing checks that his glass jaw can’t cash, and when it’s time to flip it around and blindside you with all the serious stuff that comes from a superhero comic, it subverts your expectations and feels a whole lot more serious than it actually is.â€
And let's be completely fair. Most big action drama storylines aren't really all that serious. We know that our own characters are probably not in any real danger unless we agree to it. We know that while someone may die, they're not really dead. They're just going to reroll a new character. The real impact of these events like character death is an honest feeling of loss at a character that you've enjoyed, but without laying the groundwork of having a character that others enjoy there is no sense of loss. If a dead character can be replaced by another stoic quiet loner with a mysterious past then there's no actual loss there. Often, there's not even a real sense of peril when that character is put in danger because there's no connection to him.
I'm a big fan of humor in RP, and not because I don't enjoy serious storylines. I like it because people you laugh with are people you care about. And when you care about the characters involved in a story then you care about the story.
“They all follow that mold, balancing out those small, affable, engaging character moments with the big action that works because it feels like the bad guys are going after your friends instead of your heroes.â€
I recently read an article about the lasting legacy of twenty year old comic book series, and it struck me as very informative towards RP. While it is about a comic, and a ton of information in the article is about comics, it's also very relevant to RP styles.
The whole article is a discussion about why this particular book about a group of super heroes is more impactful than any number of other books about super heroes despite the fact that it's often derided as the "Funny" book.
A lot of RPers love serious storylines. Murder, mystery, betrayal, sex, ultraviolence, blood on the ceiling, the whole nine yards. Mature storylines. And there is nothing wrong with those stories. They're not just important, they're often critical to character development. At lot of times though, the funny storyline is considered less important. It's set aside as something entertaining to do once or twice, but isn't as necessary as the impactful drama of missing loves and evil villains killing PCs.
That's where this article makes its stand. The comedy in characterization is just as important as the heavy hitting action and drama. Many Free Companies are groups of extremely powerful people fighting badguys, and bickering amongst themselves with personal drama, making them very close to the established superhero team dynamic, which means that the storylines of FCs can be informed by the same kind of story telling as in super hero comics.
“The groundwork is laid through comedy and character work, so that when the action starts, it hits harder. You’re lulled into thinking that this is just going to be a sitcom about bickering teammates and Guy Gardner’s mouth writing checks that his glass jaw can’t cash, and when it’s time to flip it around and blindside you with all the serious stuff that comes from a superhero comic, it subverts your expectations and feels a whole lot more serious than it actually is.â€
And let's be completely fair. Most big action drama storylines aren't really all that serious. We know that our own characters are probably not in any real danger unless we agree to it. We know that while someone may die, they're not really dead. They're just going to reroll a new character. The real impact of these events like character death is an honest feeling of loss at a character that you've enjoyed, but without laying the groundwork of having a character that others enjoy there is no sense of loss. If a dead character can be replaced by another stoic quiet loner with a mysterious past then there's no actual loss there. Often, there's not even a real sense of peril when that character is put in danger because there's no connection to him.
I'm a big fan of humor in RP, and not because I don't enjoy serious storylines. I like it because people you laugh with are people you care about. And when you care about the characters involved in a story then you care about the story.
“They all follow that mold, balancing out those small, affable, engaging character moments with the big action that works because it feels like the bad guys are going after your friends instead of your heroes.â€
~
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